NAA sues over USPS deal with Valassis

Arlington, Va.—The Newspaper Association of America is challenging the U.S. Postal Service's deal with big commercial mailing company Valassis Communications in court. The agreement gives Valassis a steep postage discount in return for increased mail volume.
In August, the Postal Regulatory Commission approved the deal proposed by the Postal Service that would give Valassis discounts up to 34% provided it sends 1 million additional pieces of commercial mail over the next 12 months. The commission estimated that the increased volume would net the Postal Service up to $15.3 million over three years.
But in its suit against the PRC, filed in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, the NAA charged that the deal “has given one company a price incentive to move advertising inserts out of newspapers delivered to consumers' homes.”